The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has established an incident desk to respond to inquiries and provide regular updates following the derailment of the Abuja-Kaduna Train Service (AKTS).
Managing Director of NRC, Dr. Kayode Opeifa, disclosed this in a press release issued on Wednesday in Lagos. He explained that the desk would be accessible through dedicated phone lines handled by officials: Queen (0703 645 2228), Lilian (0703 199 3211), and Abubakar (0803 659 3212).
According to Opeifa, efforts to trace passengers have so far yielded significant results, with 510 out of the 583 passengers listed on the manifest already contacted.
He recalled that the incident occurred on August 26, when a train bound for Kaduna derailed between Kubwa and Asham stations, involving a locomotive and several coaches.
Providing an update on recovery operations, Opeifa revealed that engineers had successfully retrieved one locomotive and four coaches, which have since been moved to Idu Station for assessment. The exercise, he added, was made possible through the construction of a new 100-meter track alongside the damaged line.
“Site preparation has commenced for the deployment of heavy equipment to recover the remaining four coaches and an additional locomotive,” the NRC boss stated.
He further explained that a total of 618 persons were onboard the train at the time of the derailment, comprising 583 passengers, 15 NRC crew members, one medical personnel, eight cleaners, and 11 catering staff. All were safely evacuated from the scene.
While seven passengers were initially reported as critically injured, a detailed assessment by the NRC medical team later confirmed that 20 sustained injuries of varying severity, with nine classified as critical.
Opeifa assured that the corporation takes full responsibility for the incident and is committed to supporting the injured and their families. He expressed appreciation to security agencies for ensuring smooth and safe recovery operations and acknowledged the media for its continued support.
The NRC chief also commended the Minister of Transportation, Sen. Saidu Alkali, for visiting the site and recognizing the corporation’s recovery efforts.
Reaffirming the NRC’s commitment to safety, Opeifa emphasized that every measure is being taken to restore full train operations as quickly as possible.
“Passenger safety and service reliability remain the corporation’s topmost priorities,” he concluded.
